| Issue | City of Fernie | RDEK |
| Traditional Services | ||
| Water | Water system carries a significant MFA debt ($3.5 million?) and is aging and reputed to need substantial investment in relatively near future. Yearly charge (tax + utility bill) $237.72 | FAR has its own water treatment and distribution system which is adequate to meet forseeable growth needs. This consists of wells and a reservoir on the mountain as well as a well beside the Elk River which can feed the water system though a 10 inch pipe. Yearly fee $112. |
| Sewer | Also rumoured to carry a $3.5 million MFA debt. Yearly fee (tax + utility bill) $291.60 | Waste treatment plant sufficient for developments under way and possibly for full scale development plans. RDEK has made it clear that developers will be responsible for any necessary upgrades. Yearly fee $50 |
| Street Lighting | ??? | Limited amount of street lighting with opinions divided on whether more is desired. Could easily be handled by a LSA if generally desired. |
| Garbage Collection | Possible benefit, but city style curb side collection would not be appropriate. The cities failure to participate in the regional landfill study and threats to abrogate its land fill access contracts with the RDEK are not reassuring. Yearly fee$142.80 | Investigating bear proof containers funded by users. Already in place and satisfactory on Timberline properties. Yearly fee not yet determined, but current estimates are $60 per year. |
| Fire Protection | Contracted from Fernie Fire department for five years by means of an RDEK local service agreement | |
| Snow Removal | Side streets in the City of Fernie often remain all but impassible or terribly rutted for days after a snow storm. Even fairly major streets are not quickly cleared. | The ski hill road is usually plowed quickly and frequently and even Timberline crescent is usually cleared before noon. Even in the 'bad year' of Northland the street clearing at the hill was much better than in the town. |
| Fiscal Matters | ||
| Financial Status | The City is deeply in debt, probably more than $10 million dollars and is holding a referendum to clear the way to borrow more. At some point the property owners within Fernie will have to repay this debt. | Other valley municipalities have managed to accumulate significant cash reserves. Sparwood is reported to have something like $15 million in the bank. |
| Overhead | Large and expensive staff and expensive pool. | RDEK has a fairly small staff and offices for administering its large geographical area. |
| Taxes | Mill rate of 8.7621 not counting school utilities. | Mill rate of 2.368 not counting school or utilities. Fire protection raise this another 1.60 maximum, but probably significantly less. |
| Development Issues | ||
| Planning, Zoning and Community Input | Recent zoning and development decisions in Fernie seem to reflect a desparate need for money and little regard for public opinion or their own Official Community Plan. There seems to be the real possibility that unbridled development on the ski hill would be seen as a way to increase City tax revenue while not directly impacting the bulk of the Fernie voters. | The RDEK has a competent planning department that is familiar with resort development. They created a position on the Advisory Planning Council for a ski hill representative. They have made it clear to Skiing Louise that an Official Community Plan would be necessary before any additional land was zoned for development and that significant public consultation would be required. When a rezoning conflict arose a few years ago, the RDEK was responsive to the residents concerns. |
| Miscellaneous | ||
| Bylaws | Many of the residents of our area chose this location to be outside of the city. It is easy to imagine bylaws pertinent to the city might not be appropriate for us. |